A Bed of Stars by Jessica Love

Abstract

Reviewed by: A Bed of Stars by Jessica Love Kate Quealy-Gainer, Editor Love, Jessica A Bed of Stars; written and illus. by Jessica Love. Candlewick, 2023 [40p] Trade ed. ISBN 9781536212396 $18.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R* 4-8 yrs At breakfast, our protagonist’s father announces that they are going camping in the desert. Why? “To shake hands with the universe,” says Dad. So off the two go in Darlin’, their old, beat-up truck, with a pit stop at the junkyard for some spare parts, and soon they’re at the sandy dunes to make camp. After a day of exploring their surroundings and sitting by the fire, it’s time for bed, and here we come to the crux of Dad’s existential reasoning for the trip. Kiddo, it seems, has been having trouble falling asleep, scared and overwhelmed by the vastness of the universe. Dad gently reminds the young child that the stars are made up of energy, just like humans, and that perhaps naming some of the astral objects will make them feel more familiar and safe. The strategy works, and after realizing “we’re all made of the same stuff, in different bodies,” the kid is snoozing away. It’s a heavy contemplation of the very nature of being, and yet Love makes it entirely kid-friendly. A gentle specificity easily merges the conceptual with the corporeal, as the pair encounters energy in its various forms throughout the day in living beings, like plant life and insects they find, and even in nonliving entities, such as their fire and Darlin’. The linework of the watercolor, gouache, and ink illustrations has a languid ease, and soft blending and dappled textures flow between figures and background, underscoring the theme of continuity. Young listeners who tend to be more introspective than rambunctious will appreciate this soothing rumination on the nature of existence and the accepting of the unknowable. Copyright © 2022 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois